Director, writer and performer Katerina writes and directs our plays and installations. She loves environmental design, sensory effects and projections. She’s an Associate Director at Festival Arts, where she’s directed plays including Alice In Wonderland, Puss In Boots and The Wizard of Oz. Katerina is a graduate of Birmingham REP’s Foundry programme and member of Stage Directors UK’s working party on diversity. She’s got an MA in Digital Arts for Performance and trained with Lev Dodin at St Petersburg Maly Drama Theatre, Paul Hunter at Told By An Idiot, Justin Audibert on a JMK Residency & Natalie Abrahami at The Young Vic.

Our early years lead, Beth, has also devised and performed in What Big Eyes, Ding Dong, and Ariel On The Cliff (which she also composed). She plays clarinet, banjo, violin, recorder & other wind instruments. Beth also works as a facilitator for Multicultural Music Making, exploring a range of music traditions with 8-11 year olds in 3 Ladywood schools. She completed Arts Connect’s CPD programme for Early Years arts facilitators, Moonbeams, researching how music can stimulate movement in nurseries. Beth is also a solo singer-songwriter, and sings/plays with The Nature Centre (Brummie Avant-pop): she’s been playing in bands since 2005, appearing at Latitude Festival, The Secret Garden Party, La Fleche D’Or, Radio 1’s Big Weekend and a live BBC Radio 1 session for Huw Stevens at Maida Vale.

Jess Clixby: Creative Associate

Jess has collaborated with Katerina on all our installation projects since 2015, inc. Sensory Street, Dooville & Technicolor Town (Bham REP), Northfield Robofest (Fun Palaces), and Elmer’s Swamp (mac Birmingham). She has a portfolio of diverse skills from props making and sewing (she made the giant patchwork canopy for Elmer’s Swamp) to writing, dramaturgy and an MA in children’s literature.

Natalie Mason: Actor-Musician, Composer, Evaluator and Consultant

Founding ensemble member, composer as multi-instrumentalist Natalie co-devised and performed in both What Big Eyes and Ding Dong, helping to shape the company’s ethos and approach. She continues to work closely with us, contributing her considerable expertise to our strategic planning as we grow the company.

Natalie’s worked extensively as a music facilitator in challenging areas, including with street youth in Cape Town and in Ladywood / Walsall primary schools through her own project Multicultural Music Making, so she brings a wealth of relevant expertise.